I can’t get enough of the great Joe Zawinul tune «Mercy Mercy Mercy». So I collected many diverse covers on YouTube.

A big band version by The Birdland Big Band with drummer Tommy Igoe:

A very unusual version by a Polish guitar quintet:

Buddy Rich, live, with funny introduction:

Version by Nils Landgren’s, Swedish trombone player:

Why not listen to the famous version by Cannonball Adderley with Joe Zawinul on keybaords?

According to the Yakima Herald keyboarder/electric bass player Larry Knechtel dies at age 69.

Larry Knechtel was a busy musician, working live and in the studios. He recently collaborated with The Dixie Chicks. Besides that he played with musicians and bands such as Ray Charles, Dolly Parton, The Doors, The Byrds, Neil Diamond, The Beach Boys, Steppenwolf, Randy Newman, Harry Nilsson and Elvis Presley.

Larry Knechtel received a Grammy award for arranging Simon and Garfunkel’s super hit Bridge Over Troubled Water, on which he also played keyboard. He was also a member of Bread.

As studio musician Larry Knechtel was an important part of the Los Angeles music studio scene of the nineteen-sixties.

• Biography of Larry Knechtel
• Larry Knechtel discography
• YouTube: Bread live – Bridge Over Troubled Water (with Larry Knechtel on piano)

British Photographer George Hoole (Photo: David Berman)

George Hoole worked as a successful photographer in London in the nineteen-sixties. His promising career was suddenly hampered by a stroke when he was 33.

His pictures defined the look of many British pop and rock musicians like Traffic, The  Animals. Keith Moon an Donovan. His camera also showed interest in the British  flower power scene.

But Hoole didn’t only take pictures in the word of show business. He also photographed people who didn’t live on the sunny side of the street.

David Berman produced a wonderful and touching portrait of George Hoole (length: 4 min 31 sec) that includes many great photos from the nineteen-sixties.

The Motels are a classic New Wave band from Los Angeles that started in 1975. They had various line up changes around charismatic singer and guitarist Martha Davis.

On October 18, 1979 the German TV show Musikladen (public broadcaster ARD) broadcast a live performance of The Motels. Below you find six songs from the album Motels (1979) taped for Musikladen.

Find out more about The Motels at The Motels Information Site. It’s also worth to pay a visit to the Revenge of the 80s Radio Podcast that features an extensive interview with Martha Davis.

Celia

Source: www.mybeatclub.com

Dressing Up

Source: www.mybeatclub.com

Closets & Bullets

Source: www.mybeatclub.com

Anticipating

Source: www.mybeatclub.com

Total Control

Source: www.mybeatclub.com

Kix

Source: www.mybeatclub.com

The history of eyeglasses and rock and roll has to be written yet. Consider this random photo collection as a modest starting point. Scroll down and indulge yourself in rocking eyeglasses!

Buddy Holly, The-Father-Of-Rock-and-Roll-Horn-Rimmed-Eyeglasses (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

Roy Orbison comes very close to Buddy Holly with his eyeglasses  (Photo by John Waterman/Fox Photos/Getty Images)

Watch out Buddy Holly and Roy Orbison, Rockabilly legend Jody Reynolds wears some nice horn-rimmed-eyeglasses, too!

Little Richard, King Of Sunglasses And Rock ‘n’ Roll (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)

The other King Of Rock And Roll: Elvis Presley with his wife Priscilla, showing off his fancy eyeglasses (Photo found at Silver Lining Opticians)

Janis Joplin (1969) knows: these glasses keep your eyes warm in winter (Photo by Stroud/Express/Getty Images)

Rock star John Lennon and his wife Yoko Ono in 1980: Sometimes stars and sunglasses come in pairs (photo: David Mcgough, LIFE)

He ain’t no rock ‘n’ roller but he sure got fine glasses